Up to 100 homeless people will be able to ‘purchase’ three free items a day from the machine using a traceable key card.

The concept is the brainchild of new Nottingham homelessness charity Action Hunger, who have chosen the city for the project’s pilot ahead of plans to roll out machines across the country.

Charity trustee Huzaifah Khaled, who believes the machine is the first of its kind in the world, said: ‘We chose Nottingham because it’s the city that I grew up in and have a deep affinity for, but we do plan on installing [a vending machine] in Manchester in January, then London and Birmingham.

Up to 100 homeless people will be able to ‘purchase’ three free items a day from the machine using a traceable key card. (Picture: BPM)

‘But everything hinges on how this does in Nottingham.’

The machine will be installed under the canopy near to back entrances of Broadmarsh, in Sussex Street, at the start of December